Fiver sat outside the warren by his lonesome keeping a little distance away from the great yew tree. He refused to socialize with the other rabbits of Thinial, troubled by that dreadful vision in his dreams last night and Prake's prejudice against hutch rabbits. What could drive Prake to bury innocent rabbits in the depts of a man's grave in such a cruel manner? Were they hutch rabbits too? And who is this mysterious Milmown? Why did she mate with a buck infected by the White Blindness? Is there a chance she's still alive, even after giving birth to a litter? If so, where could she be? Something is wrong here in Thinial. Fiver knew had had to get to the bottom of this, but what could he do.

Just then, little Pipkin came bounding out of a hole searching for him. Lily trailed behind him, with a puzzled look on her face. She had a wonderful time with Blackberry under their training to become Healing Matrons themselves. Juniper proved to be an excellent teacher, however, her mood toward Lily ever since finding out the lass used to be a hutch rabbit had changed. Juniper still maintained a cheerful personality, but there was a hint of uneasiness in her eyes. Lily retold it to Blackberry when their teacher granted permission for her students to take a break. Blackberry just assured her that Juniper is probably trying to get used to her. This didn't convince Lily. During her break, the mother and her kit found Fiver huddled close to a tombstone, both exchanging concerned faces.

"Where have you been, Fiver? Are you sick or injured?" Pipkin inquired.

"No, I'm fine. But someone had to stand watch," Fiver shuddered.

"For what?"

"I don't know, but it's here. All around us. We must go home."

"I don't think Hawkbit, Dandelion and Bluebell want to leave. They're desperately trying to court some of the does here, although I can't say the same for Blackberry. She continuously rejects Bluebell a couple of times and no buck here caught her interest."

"Is there something wrong, Fiver?" Lily asked worriedly, then her expression frowned. "Is this because of Prake? Because she has no right to speak ill of hutch rabbits!"

"It's not just Prake. It's this whole warren. The rabbits may all seem healthy and happy, but..." Fiver hesitated grimly, "they smell like barley rained on and left to rot in the fields. They smell like a wounded mole that can't get underground. There's a sadness and evil in that place. It's all wrong. Not like Cowslip's warren, but still...I don't know. I just…I can't explain it."

"I think I know what you mean, Fiver." Pipkin thought for a moment, remembering a minor incident with the warren's young inhabitants. "I got along really well with some of the kits in the warren early this morning, but now their parents instantly forbid any contact with me. I was so hurt that I tried to ask them why, but they didn't seem to care about me. They gawked at me like I was a plague."

Lily was shocked by the inhabitants' apparent callousness to her son's feelings. "How can the parents raise their kits to behave so abominably? It's insane!"

"And that's not all," Pipkin continued further on as grief frown crossed his face, "remember during silflay this morning when Hannah tried interacting with some of those kittens? Well, Hannah told me how she was just telling them about her life on the farm, until the kits' mothers hauled them aside and forbid any communication with her. I don't understand why they're behaving so rudely to me and Hannah now! We never did anything wrong!"

While embracing her son who was in need of solace, Lily radiated a cold fury in silence as she tried to figure out the reason for the discourteous attitude of Thinial's rabbits: Prake has an unpleasant aversion to hutch rabbits simply because she believed living amongst humans might infect rabbits with the White Blindness. Flyairth's panicked agitation upon their discovery of the dead human, especially when two more Men came to carry the body away. Pipkin's news had just dropped on her as the Watership gang were getting aquatinted with Juniper and the others. What is the mystery behind all of this? Oh, how she desired to slash those nasty parents for teaching their children to persistently shun her child and her mousy companion like that.

"You may be right, Fiver. We shouldn't stay here any longer. Shouldn't we try telling Hazel and the others?" Pipkin suggested.

"I'm willing to try, but we need proof first," Lily spoke at last, her scorn never left her face. "Remember that time in Cowslip's warren? The others gave you a bad time, probably after we fought so many dangers, they were willing to trust a stranger who took advantage of them. We had no proof of it until Bigwig stuck his neck in a snare. Do you think there are snares around here somewhere?"

"I don't believe so." Fiver shook his head, then something caught his attention. "Hey, isn't that Juniper?"

They turned and noticed the green doe quietly slipping out of a tunnel behind the giant tree. She cautiously made doubly sure there was nobody else close by, before she lolloped out of the tunnel carrying a huge mouthful of thyme and laurel. Juniper bounded off toward a different area of the Stone Orchards as fast as she could go.

"Where is she going?" Pipkin wondered, curious about the doe's behavior.

"I don't know, but I think it's time we get to the bottom of this." Fiver stood up with confidence and lolloped after the suspicious doe, his two allies trailed behind him.

The sun had vanished behind passing white clouds, signaling the approach of another rainstorm, but it gave the atmosphere a grim touch for the trio as they trudged through the cemetery, keeping themselves at a distance so not to get caught. Whatever Juniper was up to, it had to be connected to the occupants' indifference toward them. If it was anything dangerous, they were to leave as soon as possible. They stumbled upon a lonely crypt, encompassed by several headstones and a few trees, where Juniper proceeded to the entrance and used her paws to rat-a-tap-tap against the metal door. It creaked eerily when it opened from the inside. Lily was secretly impressed a rabbit can use a secret knock, but this is no time for admiration. She and her friends determined to gain some answers whether Juniper will confess or not.

"JUNIPER!" Fiver shouted, the tone of his voice filled with commanding authority.

Juniper sprang up with a sharp gasp of her breath and stared, livid and trembling, before them. A shade of white masked her green furry face. Her eyes full of horror as she felt herself cornered against the door like a helpless prey trapped by a hungry predator.

"What are you doing, Juniper?" Fiver demanded, his eyes narrowed.

"N-Nothing! I was just err... checking the area for elil." The green doe stuttered for an excuse, the plants fell from her mouth when she spoke.

"Don't lie to us!" Lily scolded, sternly. "The residents of your warren have treated us with hospitality first, and now my son and Hannah were treated unfairly for no reason! Not to mention you have been acting strange lately! All because I once lived the life of a hutch rabbit! Now, explain yourself!"

Juniper looked at them in a helpless way as she miserably crouched low, but her eyes shut tight as she grew defiant. "It is my business, not yours."

"Then you're involved in some dark plot against me and my companions!" Lily accused, growing angrier by the second.

Suddenly a ghostly booming voice intoned out of the darkness behind the open door, "YOU DARE ACCUSE MY DARLING OF SUCH LIES?!" Slowly emerging from the shadow, the pale face of a rabbit glided into a shaft of light. His cloudy eyes shone with venom at the trespassers.

Fiver, Lily and Pipkin stood aghast at the sight before them. Was this rabbit a specter? Is Juniper conspiring with a phantom sent by the Black Rabbit of Inle to kill them all? The trio started to panic, tumbling and bumping into each other in their haste to escape from this ghastly apparition.

"GHOST!" The trio screamed in terror.

"No, no! He's not a ghost!" Juniper rushed forward as she waved her paws frantically, trying to ease their stricken minds.

"It appears our secret is out," groaned the ghostly face of the rabbit, dismayed at the revelation. "We have to leave this place, Juniper. This is the end of it."

"Oh, Dogwood, don't speak of such things!" Juniper wailed. "I had no idea I was being followed, and these rabbits don't belong in my warren! They're from another warren!"

Lily's head cocked up, her eyes confused. "Did you just call that ghost Dogwood?"

"Yes, and for your information, he is not a ghost! He's a real rabbit."

The trio from Watership Down had calmed down at last, realization dawned upon them when they grasped on reality. The pale face of the rabbit called Dogwood emerged gradually out of the darkness, and they could see he was indeed a creature of flesh and blood. His height the same as Hazel, the color of his fur is yellowish white, and his eyes were milky white. Dogwood was blind, yet his dark thin pupils could still be seen and he fixed a hard look at the newcomers, fully aware of their presence which surprised the trio.

"Uh, sorry. We assumed you were a ghost due to your face and your... ahem, blindness." Fiver apologized, embarrassed.

"I'm not blind. I just can't see." Dogwood replied, sitting on the stone step calmly. "My siblings are just as blind as I am, but our other senses function perfectly."

"Siblings? Are there more of you?"

"Just the four of us - we're all that's left of Milmown."

At the mention of that familiar name, Fiver's eyes grew widened. Finally, he'd get some answers about her. "Wait a second! Do you know Milmown?"

"Absolutely, she's my mother," Dogwood responded, rather sadly, "or I should say late mother."

Fiver sighed in dismay. So Milmown has stopped running, after all. He thought, sadly. Pipkin and Lily exchanged baffled glances at Fiver, wondering how on earth does he know the name of Dogwood's mother. Even Juniper herself was at a loss of words.

"How is it that a complete stranger like you knows my mother?" Dogwood questioned, his milky eyes narrowing suspiciously at Fiver.

"He's a seer in our warren on Watership Down," Lily explained. "Fiver is born with the second sight - the ability to see the future. He also has superior knowledge of Thinial's history from a secret underground river of Efrafa."

Dogwood raised a skeptic eyebrow, unsure whether to believe her or not.

Fortunately, Juniper confirmed that word they spoke is sincere. "It's true, Fiver does see the future and he does know everything about Thinial through this secret river."

"Except he doesn't know everything about Thinial," Dogwood added, bitterly.

"What do you mean?" Pipkin inquired.

"How much do all of you know about Thinial?"

"Well..." Pipkin recalled with an incredible memory lapse, "Fiver told us about how Flyairth and her friends evacuated from their old warren in Cottington's Hill to escape a terrible sickness, they settled down in their new home in the Stone Orchards where they grow an inside garden of healthy flowers or herbs to prevent any disease. This is because Flyairth discovered a hlessi infected with the White Blindness almost came to their warren on his own accord, but the Owsla kicked him out to protect their warren."

"And that infected hlessi happens to my father!" Dogwood interrupted.

"YOUR FATHER?!" Fiver, Lily and Pipkin gasped in union.

"His name is Rhododendron," Dogwood continued, deciding to tell his parents' side of the story, "his old warren was Cottington's Hill where everyone died by the Blindness, but he still survived long enough to find Thinial and hoping he might make amends for not listening to Flyairth's warning of evacuation. Sadly, Flyairth didn't recognized him as a result of his sickened state and banished him."

"It's just like how Holly and his comrades found our warren after suffering so much in the Sandleford massacre," Lily whispered.

"Ever since the Blindness destroyed Cottington's Hill, my mother, Flyairth, feared the White Blindness so much, for if it got into her warren, it would destroy our friends and family," Juniper told on, "she meant to go to great lengths to keep the Blindness out of Thinial. Her greatest fear was that an infected rabbit might wander into the warren. All strangers were refused entry, whether or not they are ill. Guard duty at night proved difficult. A stranger could get in unseen, so the bucks agreed to take turns with the Owsla does to keep watch. But one strange thing about the Blindness is this; any infected rabbits are able to mate."

Fiver, Lily and Pipkin remained inaudible, listening intently to their story.

"My father, Rhododendron, had wandered into the Stone Orchards," said Dogwood. "He was chased out of Thinial by the bucks. On his way out, he met one of the warren's inhabitants, her name was Milmown, my mother. She pitied him and started searching for healing herbs in the hopes of curing him. They fell deeply in love and mated in secret. Sadly, Rhododendron's sickness grew worse. All might have been well had Milmown not developed the Blindness. He apologized for infecting her, but she never showed regret because she cared about him. Rhododendron succumbed to the Blindness and passed away. When it became apparent that Milmown had been having an affair with the infected buck and showing signs of the Blindness, Flyairth and Prake were furiously implacable. Though pitied by many, Milmown was exiled out of Thinial by the Owsla and never to return. But she didn't go away. She remained a short distance from the warren here in a lonely burrow she created and constantly pleaded to be allowed to return, and for some strange reason, the progress of the disease in her was delayed."

"Milmown must be exiled!" the sharp voice of Flyairth rang in Fiver's ears as the memory of his vision crossed his mind.

"Milmown bore her litter there: Dogwood and his three brothers, Prunus, Fireweed and Rhubarb," Juniper continued, "however, all four of them born blind as a result of the Blindness, but none of them were seriously infected. As it turns out, Milmown had been well liked in the warren and had many good friends, including three in the Owsla. Sadly, these friends hadn't been able to do anything for her when she had been driven out, because Flyairth warned them she had the Blindness and she would die, not to mention punishment to any rabbit who dare disobey the Healing Matron of Thinial. When Dogwood and his brothers grew old enough to fend for themselves, the Blindness continued once more to run its course, and poor Milmown died. Her litter were living as best they could, not far from Thinial, Flyairth refused to give them help or shelter. Everyone expected them to fall victim to elil or humans, but they continued to survive. That's when I decided to step in."

"I assume the laurel and thyme leaves you carry are for Dogwood and his brothers?" Fiver guessed.

"Exactly! I heard about Milmown's fate when I was a kitten. Now that her four sons had never got the Blindness, some of Milmown's former friends had begun saying that Flyairth and Prake are going too far and that leaving Milmown's children to die outside the warren was going to unnecessary, cruel lengths. One of them tried to make Flyairth listen to reason, but she stubbornly refused to consider any change. I thought she'd have done better to let the matter drop. But she was so much obsessed by her fear of the Blindness that she couldn't weigh up its probability or improbability. For her, the safety and survival of Thinial were more important and justified any severity, so she forbade anyone mentioning Milmown's name or her children ever again, or there will be punishment to disobedient rabbits."

"What is the punishment?" Pipkin asked, nervously.

"Death by the Owsla - Prake is sort of experienced in this." Juniper sighed in silent disgust at those gruesome memories of Milmown's many friends murdered by the claws of Prake's Owsla. "I felt myself drifting farther away from my own mother. She was just brainwashing her own warren, and her own children, out of paranoia. I could see with my own eyes that Milmown's rabbits didn't have the epidemic of the White Blindness. I began going out to meet and talk to Milmown's sons out of secrecy, even bringing some of the herbs from the garden for them to eat. I hoped to cure their blind eyes myself, thinking if they are not blind anymore, then mother would grant them permission to live in Thinial. I was just a kitten back then, and I had no idea their blind sight was permanent. Nevertheless, I kept on visiting them and giving them herbs or plants to eat. When they couldn't fit into their old burrow anymore, I moved them to this crypt for safety and shelter, along with a secret knock that is known only to myself and to Dogwood's family."

"But that still doesn't explain why Thinial's occupants are treating Hannah and Pipkin terribly," Lily added. "Not to mention Prake's racism against hutch rabbits."

"I can answer that. Back in Cottington's Hill, I recall my mother telling me the humans were responsible for sending the White Blindness into their old warren, just because the rabbits were in their way of building some sort of warren for their own," Dogwood explained, correctly. "Flyairth believed that all humans bring the Blindness to rabbits to kill them. Especially animals who live amongst Man, even hutch rabbits, have the Blindness to infect the wild rabbits."

This made Lily very cross about Flyairth's misguided beliefs. "Not all humans infect rabbits with the Blindness! Look at me, I've lived amongst humans all my life and I never caught any sickness! Hannah, Clover, and the hutch rabbits have never caught a sickness when they lived at Nuthanger Farm. This is intolerable! You can't keep yourselves locked up inside a crypt forever. We must inform Hazel and the others about this!"

"Is this Hazel a friend of yours?" Dogwood gazed at them, uneasily.

"Yes, you can trust him," Lily assured him. "He's the Chief Rabbit of our warren, and I'm sure he can help you."

Somewhere nearby, several dark shadows emerged from the tall tussocks and tombstones. Lily's group tensed up on high alert. A ring of Thinial's Owsla had slowly formed around the isolated outsiders, cornering them at the door of the crypt. Angry deep growls erupted from Lily and Juniper's throats as they prepared to take their chance of a fight.

Whilst Lily and companions were following Juniper to her friends' secret hideout, Hazel and Bigwig were outside the warren silflaying, hoping to take their minds off the gory discovery of the dead human just beyond the Stone Orchards.

"You know, Hazel," said Bigwig, "we did tell Flyairth we wanted to stay for one night before going home. I've been away from my children long enough."

"So have I, and I miss Clover and my young children very much... you're right. We need to move on. With luck, we should be back to Watership Down before next Frith-down," Hazel agreed. "I'll go tell the others we need to leave at once."

They located the members of their group one by one after explaining their desire to go back to Watership Down, except Hawkbit, Dandelion and Bluebell refused to leave when they met a few pretty does and attempted to court them. Just before Bigwig threatened to scratch the next buck who disobeys him, Flyairth arrived to break it up, lightly scolding the two jokester bucks like a mother to her disobedient kits. "Forgive me for intruding upon you and your bucks, Captain Bigwig, but I wished to check on you all. See how you've all been faring in Thinial."

"Well, I must say you've all been hospitable, to say the least. But even rabbits must return to their own warren, and that time is now. Right, Hazel?"

"Oh yes. Again, we thank you for taking our band in during our long journey. We can never do enough to repay your kindness."

"Actually, perhaps you can. I only wish you to stay awhile to hear me out, Hazel-rah. I'd like to speak to you and your Owsla Captain," she offered.

Hazel agreed, although Bigwig relented with much reluctance. Standing underneath the great yew tree, the two bucks seated themselves in front of the Chief Rabbit to hear what she wanted to say to them.

"I understand you wish to return home, but I want you to hear out a proposition I have for you," Flyairth began. Curious, Hazel and Bigwig nodded to let her continue. "Hazel, you and your rabbits have certainly made a good impression on our warren, and everyone here is quite fond of you…especially me."

"Well…thank you, Flyairth. And may I say you and your warren have been most hospitable during our stay here. We could never repay your kindness in full."

"Yes, I figured as such, but perhaps you can…if you are willing to listen." Bigwig and Hazel nodded curiously before the Matron continued.

"My friends, we both have much in common: we were displaced by the works of Man, our homes destroyed by his machinations. And yet, we were survivors, having to endure many trials and tribulations to find a new home to settle down in. We both soon found our peace and sanctuary from all the evils of the worlds: your Watership Down and my Thinial. Not many rabbits can say they did the same thing after losing their home."

Hazel and Bigwig solemnly nodded.

"Yes…we all have," Hazel remarked, "but Frith has taught us all that good always comes from every evil. From the loss of our homes to find a new home, we were able to learn from the mistakes of our old warrens and apply them to how our new warrens would be run. Like how we chose to be open to new ideas, exploring new possibilities on how to run our warren, or like how you chose to invest your new warren into healing so that you can save more lives from disease rather than lose them."

Flyairth lightly chuckled to their remarks. "Thank you. But you know…since our tragedies, we have all risen to become prominent figures in our own warrens. You, Hazel-rah, have become a visionary of peace and cunning, and you, Bigwig, a honorable warrior and strategist. And then…there's me, the honorable Matron Healer of Thinial. It's such a stroke of fate that the three of us came together in these circumstances. Why…if we wanted, together we could do…anything…"

Hazel and Bigwig looked at each other with a slight concern as they notice a sense of zealousness from the aged doe.

"Yes…I suppose we could, if we had a mind to," Bigwig remarked.

"Both our warrens have seen more times of peace and safety than ever. Our subjects are happy and we are fortunate in so many ways."

"Where are you going with this, Flyairth?" Hazel inquired with a raised brow.

"I'm saying…we should share our prosperity and ideals with other rabbits outside of our warrens. Together, in our paws, we could forge and establish the largest network of warrens in the history of our kind. Could you imagine such a thing? A world of rabbits where they won't have to keep running from danger as our ancestors did. A world without fear of elil, death, war, sickness, and other tragedies."

This deeply intrigued Hazel and Bigwig at the very idea of living in a world without fear of such dangerous elil or sickness, although death, war, change, and loss is something very hard to avoid when they've experienced it all their lives. Upon their arrival in Watership Down, they made some changes to make their warren a better place. And yet…something about Flyairth's vision sounded almost like a certain enemy of theirs…but hopefully, they thought, she was not that forceful.

"It is quite an interesting offer, Flyairth, but in our warren, we don't want to impose our ideas onto other rabbits. We want to encourage all creatures to think for themselves. Make their own choices," Hazel explained reasonably. "While our warren is about change, it's also about choice. It's about encouraging in all kinds of ideas, that they are shared freely and not forcefully. The same goes for what El-ahrairah taught his people, and what he passed down to all of us."

However, Flyairth's friendly expression changed to aloof sternness. She wanted to turn the conversation to her own beliefs so these Watership rabbits can understand her views. "A funny thing you mentioned…El-ahrairah. As if to say that he was the greatest of our rabbit culture, particular in your freedom of choice."

"Well, of course he was, Flyairth," Bigwig pointed out. "He was a trickster. It's from him that we learned that we choose whether to run, to fight, or even to trick the elil."

"Even though it was him who condemned all rabbitkind to endless persecution from all of nature? If you want to look for the greatest rabbit of our culture, look to the healer of the first warren, Aconitum. All of us aware of the El-ahrairah stories since youth, but nobody tells of the legendary healer who was the only rabbit to cure all ailments, including the greatest ailment inflicted by Frith: death. For a long time, I had wanted to live up to the legacy he set as a healer for all rabbitkind and that it has been my calling to undo not just sickness like the White Blindness, but all the miseries and sorrows that came about from El-ahrairah's arrogance and disregard for how his actions would affect his own people. After hearing your stories of escaping Sandleford and Cowslip's warren, and rescuing does from Nuthanger farm and Efrafa, I believe that just as I have inherited the skills of Aconitum as his reincarnation, you two have inherited the ancestral blood of the Prince of Rabbits and the First of Owsla Captains reincarnated within you - Hazel and Bigwig."

Hazel and Bigwig's eyes enlarged in bewilderment. Flyairth, believing herself a reincarnated rabbit of Aconitum who can cure any ailment in this world, including death. That would mean living a life of immortality without dying of old age. They have heard of Aconitum, a rabbit named after wolf's bane, back in Sandleford in their childhood, but every rabbit in the warren spoke of Aconitum as a deranged lunatic and sworn off from speaking of him again. Now that they think about it, Hazel and Bigwig wondered why was this legendary healer never mentioned in any El-ahrairah tales.

"I believe it has always been our shared calling to save rabbitkind, starting with the cooperation of Thinial and Watership Down. Together, we can create a powerful force to bring all rabbits into a submission of peace, by the will of Frith, and to destroy all who oppose us - starting with Man, the worst animal that Frith spawned to destroy all that he touches."

As she spoke, Hazel and Bigwig start to notice Flyairth's behavior reminded them a little bit like the worst parts of Cowslip and Woundwort put together, but with an air of suspicious motherly patience that cannot entirely be trusted. Maybe there is a reason why throughout their lives their parents and elders forbid them to never speak of Aconitum ever. Thinial may be more dangerous than they had presumed. Hazel and Bigwig exchanged worrisome faces, pondering in silence over what to do.

Prake stood high on a tombstone, confronting the captured prisoners as her Owsla surrounded the helpless rabbits in a rather threatening manner. She turned to Juniper with a face of disappointment. "So, this is where you hide Milmown's offspring? I can't imagine what your mother will say when she hears what you have done."

Juniper glanced sharply at the Captain of Owsla when a scowl of hatred crossed her expression. "Do you think I'd care about what my mother thinks? What she has done to leave Milmown's sons out on their own to die without our help is unforgivable!"

"You know it is for the safety of Thinial!" Prake snarled back in retort. To her Owsla, she commanded, "Storm the crypt! Bring out the infected bucks!"

The all-female Owsla charged forward, trying to force their way past Lily, Pipkin, Fiver, Juniper and Dogwood. The four adult rabbits did their best to hold them off, while Pipkin tumbled backward and passed the door. This proved to be a mistake as the Owsla lunged over the blockage and entered the crypt. Dogwood and Juniper tried to stop them, but the green doe was yanked backwards and thrown to the ground, where Prake pinned her down. Dogwood was easily apprehended, so was Pipkin as an Owsla officer seized him.

Hearing her kit's cries, Lily attempted to tackle her son's captor when a larger Owsla doe pressed her weight over her smaller form to keep her down. Two other officers caught hold of Fiver by his arms, restraining him as he struggled against his abductors. Numerous growls and grunts erupted from within the crypt. It didn't take long for the Owsla to return, forcibly escorting three buck rabbits outside. All three of them blind and terrorized.

Searching for a way to destroy her enemies, Prake discovered an abandoned open grave close by and a morbid idea came to her. "Throw the infected bucks into the pit, along with these snooping outsiders!" she ordered, pointing to the grave.

Enraged, Juniper reached over and bit Prake's front paw, making her withdrew in pain. It gave Juniper a chance to kick her in the face and dashed back to the warren like a mad hare. She had to get help from Hazel's band to rescue their comrades as well as her own. One of the officers pursued her, but she never cared one bit.

Despite their vicious struggles, Lily's group fell into the grave's dark abyss. Dogwood and his brothers came tumbling after, landing in a pile on top of one another. Then a shower of dirt rained down upon the imprisoned rabbits. Looking up, they saw the Owsla began hurriedly shoving huge piles of dirt (which they found by coincidence) down the open grave.

"What are they doing?" Pipkin wondered, clutching his mother's waist.

And then, Fiver saw it all. His vision of last night. The unfortunate rabbits incarcerated deep in the gaping hole of Man's grave as the Owsla of Thinial cruelly engulfed the victims with piles of earth - it was his group and Milmown's children he had seen in his dreams. "Oh no! We're being buried alive!"

"OH, FRITH AND INLÉ!" Lily shrieked, then she desperately screamed at the top of her lungs. "SOMEBODY, HELP US!"

Time is running out, the ground seemed to be raising toward their hindquarters. The rabbits scrambled against the wall in desperate attempt to get out. Clomps of earth splattered on their faces, as Prunus and Rhubarb sputtered or tried to rub the dirt off their eyes. Fireweed climbed up on Dogwood's back, allowing Fiver to crawl on their backs to the top of his head. Fiver came close to reaching the ledge, only for Prake to push his paws off, sending the bucks tumbling downward.

On motherly instinct, Lily hoisted Pipkin on her back and leaned toward the wall, standing tall on her hind legs to reach the ledge. "Just in case I don't make it and your father doesn't come, I want you to get out of here as soon as possible."

Shocked by his mother's effort to sacrifice herself, Pipkin scrambled off her back. "No, I won't leave you!" he wailed. "I already lost my family to a weasel! I don't want to lose another one!" Though try as he might, Pipkin couldn't reach the high ledge. He still refused to abandon his mother and friends to their doom, resigned to accept his fate.

"So…what do you two say? Shall we save this world for rabbitkind, starting now?" Flyairth asked the two with an eagerness that could be perceived as almost obsessive, yet with that same ominous motherly presence. Before they could even give an answer, Hazel and Bigwig's ears shot up in alarm when they heard and saw the panicked Juniper rushing toward them.

"Hazel-rah! HAZEL-RAH!" Juniper bellowed, her furry face pale with terror. "Your brother and his friends are in trouble! We need help, come quick!"

The Watership rabbits gasped in alarm and concern at their friends' situation.

"Fiver, in trouble?" Hazel gasped, terrified for his little brother.

"Yes! As well as Lily and Pipkin! Prake and her Owsla are burying them all alive!"

"Oh no!" Bigwig grew stunned with shock and horror for his mate and son's safety. "Show us where they are!"

Before Hazel's group can race to the rescue, a flash of green fur flew in front of their faces. Flyairth had blocked their path on purpose, joined by some of the most tough-looking does that could prove formidable in the Owsla. Her face indignant and irrationally anxious. "You will not intervene! The hutch rabbit cannot be saved! Lily was raised by Man and she might carry a sickness with her, perhaps even worse than the Blindness! And all who come from Man must be killed for the good of all rabbits!"

"KILLED?! You want to kill my mate... HOW DARE YOU!" Bigwig growled, first in disbelief at the Chief Rabbit's refusal to assist, then furiously vexed that such a rabbit would rather leave his mate to die just because she used to live in a hutch.

"You sent Prake and your Owsla to deal with Lily, didn't you? You wanted her killed but couldn't do it yourself!" Hazel lashed out. "Is that your idea of bringing peace?"

"Lily is a danger to us all, whether sick or not. Her softness towards Man counts as treason to all rabbits! And all traitors must be destroyed!" Flyairth argued back in defiant arrogance. "As for Prake, I sent her to follow my own daughter and report to me of her odd doings," she added on as her own daughter looked on. "When I learned that Milmown's infected spawn had survived, I saw my chance to further secure the same of my warren! As for Fiver and Pipkin, it seems they have learned too much on our doings. An unfortunate sacrifice, but a necessary one for the greater good." There was a look of slight regret on her face, but Flyairth had to do what she believed is right. "Milmown's sons must be destroyed to protect Thinial. And I cannot let you leave, because you will get the White Blindness!" The Chief Rabbit's expression scrunched to a violent grimace as she faced her own daughter with disgust. "As for you…I can't believe you would betray your warren by caring for Milmown's sons! After all I have taught you, you ungrateful hufsa!"

The entire Watership gang grew shocked and outraged at Flyairth's treatment to their distressed friends and stared at Juniper, who fixed a bitter frown of defiance at her mother. The warren's occupants gradually surrounded Hazel and friends, encircling them and preventing them from trying to escape. Kehaar was just about to fly up and swoop down to attack them, his wings got caught by Azalea and Orchid as the does pinned him down. Hannah concealed herself behind Blackberry, terrified by the residents' violent tendencies and aware she'd never stand a chance against them.

"ENOUGH!" demanded a harsh female voice as a small bunch of five does stepped forward bravely, taking their place beside Juniper and the Watership rabbits, growling warningly at the other warren's residents to back off or shoving them aside abruptly. The female rabbit who had snarled was a middle-aged pink and white cream-colored doe who gave Flyairth the most deadly scowl nobody had ever seen. "Let them go! Let them save their friends, you filthy worm!"

"Magnolia!" Flyairth growled, the hair rising up on the back of her neck at the doe's defiance. "You dare disobey me? What kind of a rabbit are you?"

"A friend of poor Milmown, whom I should have helped keep alive long ago!" Magnolia retorted, with an air of backbone. "We could have prevented the poor buck she helped from dying, and we could have saved Milmown's life, if it wasn't for your tyranny against all strange rabbits! Everybody liked Milmown, and we tried to help you see that she needed it, but rather than decide to help her...you expelled her from the warren because of her illness! When she died, you left her kittens out on their own instead of offering them shelter and treatment. Even though they were blind, they weren't seriously infected!"

"I've heard enough nonsense from you, traitor!"

"No, you are the traitor, Flyairth! You abandoned a friend when she needed our help! You delude yourself as Aconitum's heir, a healer who secretly practiced black magic in order to keep the warren safe from ailments, which led to his expulsion by El-ahrairah because he knew what that fool had become!"

Juniper decided to cut in, telling her mother at long last what she always thought of her. "You love your stupid garden more than your family! You never cared about any of us or any real sick rabbit because you're too afraid to catch the Blindness! Now get out of our way!"

With the aid of Magnolia's group, Hazel and friends forcibly pushed the traitorous doe and her army of misguided rabbits aside. Juniper took the lead, guiding everyone to the isolated crypt, praying they were in time to reach her boyfriend and her comrades from their grim fates.

"DAMN YOU, MISERABLE LITTLE HUFSA!" Flyairth screamed as her daughter disappeared beyond the cemetery, disowning Juniper for her treason. "If you become Blinded, you will no longer be welcome here! You are no longer my daughter!" To Hazel, she cursed her threat further on, "As for you, Hazel-rah, I promise you this - I will smite every last one of you for the betrayal of my own daughter! You're a disease that must be cleansed from Frith's world!"

Being does, the Owsla turned out to be the fastest digging crew nobody had ever seen. Falling earth clambered down all around the helpless rabbits in the grave, by now it was reaching up to their necks. It was growing difficult by the second to move as layers of earth gradually concealed them. They were powerless to fight back as Prake gleefully watched from above.

"RAAAAAAWRRR!"

There came that famous battle cry, forcing the Thinial Owsla to cease their murderous deed and look up tensely. Just then, Hazel and Bigwig and their cavalry came charging towards them, each Watership member and Magnolia's group violently tackled a Thinial officer. Though these does were bigger than them, it is often said the male is more aggressive than the female as the bucks clawed or chomped these despicable does by the ears or fur, leaving red marks for their enemies to remember them by. Kehaar swooped down out of nowhere and struck two or four members of the Owsla, sending them flying.

"Get them out of there!" Hazel commanded, as Blackberry and Silver used a portion of dirt to create a pile against the grave's wall so it will be easier to climb in and dig out their friends.

Sensing her Owsla losing a battle, Prake ordered a hasty retreat towards the warren, when suddenly a very angry and protective Bigwig blocked her path. There was murder in his own eyes as he desired to taste her blood should he rip her to pieces, the lion buck refused to let her escape unpunished for her sin.

"You're not going anywhere until I kill you!" he growled furiously through his teeth.

Cursing under breath, Prake prepared for a combat. "HRAKA! You're no better than those sick creatures!"

Then, she attacked as she swung her claws at him. Bigwig dodged them just in time. She swung at him for a second time, and the lion buck slashed at her stomach. It didn't do enough to hold her back. Bigwig had to dodge another swing from those razor-sharp claws, however, Prake's claws caught at his fur mane on his chest as she zealously cleaved a chunk from it. A cry of anguish escaped from Bigwig's mouth. Aware her opponent was in slight pain, Prake kicked him against a tombstone.

Feeling the cold stone on his back, Bigwig's bleeding chest and shoulders heaved as he panted. He had to fight his way out of this, or could he think his way out of it. Prake believed she had gained the upper paw, as she reared back and raised her paw in the air. Bigwig expected her to deliver the blow, and when she did so, he leapt out of the way. The impact of the blow hit the tombstone behind him, sending fragments of stone flying. Stunned, Bigwig had not expected Prake to be so strong. He delivered his own blow by shoving his legs at his opponent's waste. This impact sent her bouncing across the ground until she tumbled to a halt.

"Go now, Captain Prake, or we'll kill the lot of you!" Bigwig threatened her, his voice as dark and cold as the cemetery around him.

Prake had no choice. She had been beaten by a rival. And a male rival, no less. The Captain was forced to retreat or she would receive a bloody thrashing from not just Bigwig, but from the rest of his comrades as well.

No sooner had the Owsla gone, Bigwig growled softly as he felt relief swept over him. He turned to come face-to-face with his beloved doe and their precious son, having been rescued out of their grave during the fight. The lion buck threw his arms around them both, while Lily cried softly in his shoulder and Pipkin buried his face in his chest.

"Are you two alright?" Bigwig asked, his voice filled with genuine concern.

"Yes! Oh, Bigwig. I was so scared." Lily wailed, muffled with her face in his mane.

"I thought you'd never come." Pipkin's eyes streamed with tears.

As the last of Milmown's offspring were pulled out from the pit, Juniper threw herself against Dogwood in a warm embrace. He nuzzled her forehead with equal affection. She tenderly licked him back on the cheek. Prunus, Rhubarb and Fireweed stared at their rescuers with curiosity mixed with admiration. Their cloudy pale eyes made the Watership rabbits a bit petrified. Magnolia studied their faces, a bit wary but relieved that everyone was safe.

"It's okay. They're blind but healthy." Fiver assured them, as he felt his elder brother's loving embrace over his small form. He welcomed it with great endearment.

"I'm so glad you're safe, little brother," Hazel told him, but then his sentiment changed to vexation. "We should leave this place quickly. The Owsla might come back with reinforcements."

"I say we go back and kill Flyairth!" Bigwig declared in raw fury. "We should kill the lot of them for what they've done!"

"No, Bigwig! We can't afford more bloodshed." Blackberry refused to let him continue with his brief plot for revenge. "Everyone's suffered enough as it is. We're going back to Watership Down."

Hearing of the group's plan to disembark, Juniper looked at them thoughtfully and spoke, "Hazel? Are you going away?"

"Yes, why?" Hazel stared at her, wondering what she wanted.

Juniper put her paws together, as a human does in prayer, and pleaded desperately, "Take us with you. Please, take us with you."

Hazel grew puzzled, and then he noticed Dogwood and his brothers gazing at him, hoping the Chief Rabbit take pity on them. Especially at Magnolia and her four companions. Two of the ashamed does were female Owsla officers who aided them in battle, called Harebell and Tulip, and the other remorseful does who gave him pleading faces of desperation to join him were called Iris and Olive. All five of them were former friends of the late Milmown, each one displayed a look of regret and shame.

"We don't care for creatures who deceive us!" Silver answered, sharply. "Better go back to your mother."

Fiver stole a hard glare at Silver, for he felt tremendous sympathy toward Juniper and her friends. He knew what the doe had gone through all her life, living with that monster who claims she's a healing matron. Dogwood's family doesn't belong in a lonely dark crypt where they remain isolated and shunned by a paranoid society. They belong in a warren surrounded by friends who will welcome and accept them. That's the life they deserve. As for Magnolia and the rest of the does, he could see in their eyes how guilty they felt for not preventing Milmown's death nor standing up to Flyairth's tyranny sooner.

After thinking it over, Fiver whispered in his brother's ear to share his thoughts with him, and Hazel's eyes widen when he understood. Hazel glanced at his friends to decide on whether to grant permission for Juniper's group to accompany them home. After thinking it over for a second, they nodded their heads approvingly.

"You can come with us, Juniper…and so will everyone else." Hazel made his decision. "However, there might not be enough room in our warren. I think you should live at Redstone warren with Hickory and Marigold. I'm sure with your knowledge of herbs and healing, they'd be happy to welcome you and yours."

Excited and relieved to be accepted, Juniper and Dogwood exchanged hugs, and the rest of the does and bucks smiled at them with gratitude.

With this decision made, everyone left the Stone Orchards to continue their journey homeward. Although it was a very long and tiresome journey throughout the countryside, the rabbits had finally reached their destination at the high hills of Watership Down at nighttime, where a warm welcoming committee greeted them upon arrival. Clover and the kits smothered Hazel with nuzzles and hugs, Bigwig and Lily's children hugged their parents ecstatically, and Holly reported how everything ran smoothly on the down where no problems happened. Everyone gave Juniper's rabbits a pleasant reception when their sad stories were told, allowing them to sleep in burrows with some of the does as roommates until their moving to Redstone tomorrow. Kehaar settled himself in his nest comfortably and Hannah curled herself up on his feathery back. As everyone returned to their burrows with their friends and families, they had never felt so good to be back home again.